Former Transparency International Malaysia president Muhammad Mohan says court judgments would lose moral weight when political processes can effectively erase them.
Former Transparency International Malaysia (TI-M) president Muhammad Mohan said such amnesty would also erode judicial finality, as court judgments lose moral weight when political processes can effectively erase them. He added that it could severely weaken the moral authority of anti-corruption laws and enforcement bodies.
“Institutional cynicism would take hold as bodies such as the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), courts, and prosecutors risk being seen as tools of political convenience rather than neutral guardians of integrity. Past convictions or prosecutions would begin to look symbolic rather than substantive,” Muhammad said.
He also highlighted the potential “weaponisation” of prosecutions, where governments might prosecute opponents knowing that amnesty could later be traded politically. Muhammad warned that this could create cycles of elite bargaining, as each change of government could invite pressure for new amnesties.
“This creates a dangerous norm that corruption is not a crime with consequences, but a political liability to be negotiated. This will cause long-term damage to the country’s reputation,” he told FMT.
“Likely future effects would be the normalisation of impunity, as corruption becomes a calculated risk. Politicians would think, ‘Even if I am caught, amnesty is possible’.”
Muhammad said granting amnesty would also create conflicting moral obligations with earlier promises of reform and accountability, especially if past political campaigns or administrations had clearly pledged zero tolerance for corruption or insisted that everyone is subject to the law.
“Voters may see amnesty as a betrayal of trust and a post-election reversal driven by political survival rather than principle,” he noted.
He was commenting on former Bangi MP Ong Kian Ming’s call to seriously consider a full pardon for former prime minister Najib Razak, who is currently serving a jail sentence for corruption.
In a statement, Ong said his stance on a full pardon for the country’s sixth prime minister was influenced by the “grand amnesty” proposal first mooted by former Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin in 2023.
Ong said such amnesty would include not only a full pardon for Najib, but also the dismissal of ongoing cases against former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin and former finance minister Lim Guan Eng.
“This would make room for what Khairy terms a ‘political reset’, so that we can stop the process of going after our political rivals using the instruments of the state once one side is in power,” Ong said.
“In my naive and idealistic thinking, I hope this may be part of the process for greater political maturity that is much needed for this country,” he added.
Pushpan Murugiah, CEO of the Center to Combat Corruption and Cronyism (C4), said talk of amnesty for politicians was “laughable”, as it would be prejudicial against those who do not enjoy the same influence or political weight.
He pointed out that legislation, such as the MACC Act and Penal Code, with clearly defined offences and sentences for corruption, are undermined when amnesties can circumvent their provisions.
Pushpan also said proposals for a “political reset” that favour elites and influential members of the political class were “ill-informed, even if well-intentioned”.
“Having such amnesties would do democracy a great disservice as it only further takes political matters away from Malaysians,” he said.
“It would also embolden politicians and elites to act with impunity if court sentences are merely suggestions since they can find ways to shorten those sentences through their own networks of influence,” Pushpan added. - FMT
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